Gregg Allman's posthumous Southern Blood album has been set for release on September 8th. The haunting first single, 'My Only True Friend," almost feels like a warning from the late rocker, who died of health issues in May of 2017.

"You and I both know this river will surely flow to an end, keep me in your heart, keep your soul on the mend," Allman sings. "I hope you're haunted by the music of my soul when I'm gone, please don't fly away and find you a new love, I can't face living this life alone. I can't bear to think this is the end. But, you and I both know the road is my only true friend"

Allman was working on the project with his touring band at Fame Studios in Muscle Shoals, during the months and weeks leading up to his death. With Don Was producing, the singer tracked the new songs with drummer Steve Potts and bassist Ron Johnson, percussionist Marc Quinones, keyboardist Peter Levin and a horn section featuring saxophonists Jay Collins and Art Edmaiston and trumpeter Marc Franklin.

Details continue to emerge regarding Gregg Allman’s forthcoming posthumous studio album, Southern Blood. A release date of September 8 has been confirmed; additionally, the first single, “My Only True Friend,” is available for streaming. Allman recorded the material at FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, with producer Don Was manning the boards.

“I was dedicated to helping Gregg crystallize his vision for the record and to help make sure that this vision made it to the tape,” said Was, in a prepared statement. “He was a musical hero of mine and, in later years, had become a good friend. The gravitas of this particular situation was not lost on me. Gregg was a sweet, humble man with a good heart and good intentions and it was a great honor to help him put his musical affairs in order and say a proper farewell.”

Was went on to describe Muscle Shoals as sacred ground, noting that it was an especially fitting place for Allman to make his final record.

“FAME was the place where Gregg’s brother Duane first started making waves in the music world and where the earliest seeds of the Allman Brothers Band were sown in a back room during their first, seminal rehearsals,” he said. “Duane’s presence is still ubiquitous in that building. Recording there was Gregg’s way of making his spirit a part of this album, in the same way that his spirit continued to be part of Gregg’s life.”